I have finally posted online all the art I had done at the Montreal Comic-Con. Each artist I commissioned did their own version of Aang as an adult. I did not kept the best records so it took a while to track everyone down. Some of the drawings are not up yet because I have not yet positively Identified the artist.

This is being done as a Christmas present for my little cousin. I started his Aang as an adult collection at SDCC 2014. The Nickelodeon Print was sold out and he was so sad that I commissioned a couple artist to make a sketch for him. I don't have pictures for those yet, but next time I am in Houston I will add them to the Instagram page.

I just found an interesting, alternate origin of both the Avatar and the bending powers made by Avield in DeviantArt.

The First Avatar: Nubia

Water... Earth... Fire... Air.Long ago, there lived a single nation bound together in harmony and peace.Then everything changed during The Purging.Emerging from the darkness was the Avatar, the creator and teacher of the four bending elements.But when The Purging was over, he vanished.Split in ideals, but united in cause, the single nation divided into four, each reflecting a single element of their choice.And while the nations believed the Avatar to be no more, his teaching continued to shape the world and its history.But while many thought the story of the Avatar had ended, it really, had only just begun.

This is the tale of the first Avatar, Nubia, and like Aang, what he did, change the world forever.

In the beginning, there was single nation, a large traveling tribe of nomads. The dominant race on the planet, the world was their kingdom. Bound together by their natural curiosity, the nomads traveled the planet, learning all they could; its secrets, its mysteries, and its stories.

In time, the people learned that the various animal races could manipulate the elements of nature to their advantage. The dragons could push and pull fire to cook their food, the badgermoles could push and pull the earth to dig, the koi fish could push the water to swim, and the sky bisons could push and pull the air to fly.

The people studied the animals, curious and jealous of their powers. They couldn’t fly, they couldn’t swim, they couldn’t dig deep into the earth, and they certainly couldn’t create fire. Hearing their prayers, the Great Spirit demanded from the nomads a single human, someone to represent humanity and its worthiness of such power. The nomads argued for a while as to who could handle such as responsibility, but eventually they settled on a pure child named Nubia.

Proving to the Great Spirit of how worthy humanity was to receive such splendid gifts, the Great Spirit gave Nubia the ability to manipulate the elements, but not the knowledge. Before returning Nubia home, the Great Spirit warned him of its terrible power and that while he had the ability to manipulate the elements, he would have to learn from its original users. Returning home, Nubia told the tribe of what the Great Spirit had told them. With the permission of the elders, Nubia set out on his own.

In time, Nubia learned to control the elements by mimicking and learning from the animals the Great Spirit spoke of. Learning air bending from the sky bison, the sky bison allowed Nubia to domesticate them. Learning water bending from the koi fish, Nubia was taught about the push and pull of the moon and its effects on the world. Learning earth bending from the badger moles, Nubia was shown the secrets of the earth and its plentiful bounties. Learning fire bending from the dragons, Nubia was given The Eternal Flame so that mankind could learn of its many uses.

Capable of manipulating air, water, earth and fire, Nubia returned to his tribe. Doubtful of his power, the elders demanded he prove his abilities. Telling them to follow, Nubia led the tribe to large barren wasteland.

Calling it Bending, Nubia made many swift and powerful motions with his entire body allowing him to wield god-like power, just as he had learned. He raised mountains and cultivated the earth, split the continent to create rivers and lakes, used the wind to bring seeds from the surrounding areas, and used fire to light up the night sky.

The entire tribe was speechless, but Nubia broke the silence with a mighty speech. He called this new land Kwadzo, after his father, and declared it their new home. Grateful, the tribe gave Nubia their highest honor possible. From then on, Nubia became known as the Avatar.

For 20 years, life was good and the tribe prospered in this new land. In that time, Nubia married and to the delight of the tribe, his wife gave birth to four healthy boys. However, to Nubia’s surprise, each boy could only bend a single element. The first son could only bend air, the second son could only bend water, the third son could only bend earth, and the fourth son could only bend fire.

Radically different from one another, the sons soon also married, passing on their abilities to their sons and daughters, just as Nubia had done to them. Soon, the tribe was divided into airbenders, waterbenders, earthbenders, and firebenders, each believing themselves to be superior then the other three.

In a horrific event known as The Purging, the four families set out to cleanse one another so that only one bending family would remain. Non-benders chose sides and soon an all-out war erupted. Thousands were killed and it looked like no side would gain the upper hand. Disgusted by the war, Nubia preached to each side about how war was not the answer and how peace brought them together in the first place.

Hearing his words, the heads of four families decided to end the war, but it was too late. Exhausted and badly injured after fending off an attack from all four of the families, Nubia succumbed to his injuries and died at the age of 211.

Stricken with grief in what they had become, the families decided to break up, each settling in different parts of the globe. Using the original four son’s beliefs as guidelines, each elemental family set up their own separate nation, each with its own set of beliefs and culture. United in peace, but divided in ideals, the world prospered under this new system, but grieved at the loss of their Avatar.

Worshiping the gifts he gave to humanity, the four nations thought they would never see some one worthy of the title “Avatar’ ever again.

That is, until Shiya of the Water Tribe was born...

The Second Avatar: Shiya

Earth... Fire... Air... Water.Long ago, the Water Tribe existed together, as one peaceful nation.Then everything changed with the birth of Shiya.A waterbending prodigy and master healer, she was highly respected, but when she began to receive visions of the tribe's destruction, her respect quickly vanished.Split in whether to believe her not, the Water Tribe divided into two factions, until her visions proved to be a reality.Fearing the nation's destruction, Shiya proved to be the reincarnation of the Avatar, and saved the two tribes.And while many had thought that the time of the Avatar had ended, she proved them wrong.

This is the tale of the second Avatar, Shiya, and like Korra, what she did, change the world forever.

After the split of the four nations, the world mourned the loss of their Avatar, but unbeknownst to them. The Avatar had been reincarnated within a small girl named Shiya. As part of the waterbending family, her family believed heavily in the idea and belief of change. A peaceful group, the “Water Tribe” wandered the globe, constantly looking for a place for their own. The Fire Nation had already claimed the west and the Earth Kingdom had already claimed the east.

Desperate for a new home, the Water Tribe settled on large island in the middle of the vast ocean. The island was a paradise and in a short time, what once was deserted island, had become a highly populated country. (Now known as Ember Island)

Years passed and Shiya grew into a powerful and highly respected woman within the tribe. A skilled waterbender, Shiya was the first to use her bending for healing, a technique which soon became a staple for all female waterbenders.

All was peaceful, until one night Shiya received a terrible vision in her dreams. In the vision, she saw the mountain on the island erupt in fire, spurting magma, and burning the village to the ground. Terrified, Shiya woke up in the middle of the vision and ran to the leaders of her tribe. With little breath, Shiya explained to them what she had seen, but they didn’t believe her. Doubtful of such a fearful situation, the leaders ignored her warning and told her to relax.

Assuring herself that it was only a dream, Shiya went to sleep that night only to receive the same vision. This time however, she watched the whole vision. She continued where she had previously woken up and to her surprise, saw two koi fish in the water where the lava was pouring into.

To her surprise the two fish spoke to her, claiming to be Tui and La, the spirits of the moon and the ocean. Using her dreams, the two wanted to warn her of the impending the doom that was to come of the water benders. They explained to her that the island she is on really belongs to the spirit of the sun, who is angry at their presence. In order to prevent his wrath, they tell her that she must move her tribe to the North Pole, safe from the sun’s spirits wrath. Fearful that the leaders would not believe her, the two koi fish tell her that fearful are always ignorant of the truth and that patience will provide her all the truth she needs.

The next morning Shiya rushed to the leaders and explained everything the spirits had told her while proposing the idea that the whole tribe move to the north just in case. Still doubtful, the leaders demand proof, but just as they said this, the whole island shooke violently. Shiya claimed the rumbling to be proof, but some of the leaders still didn’t believe her.

Divided on whether or not Shiya was telling the truth, the issue escalated until the whole island is consumed in a civil war. Unable to come to an agreement the two sides fought fiercely until the group that believed in Shiya admitted defeat. Still fearful of the eruption, the group decides to leave the island with Shiya on a fleet of boats heading north.

However, 10 minutes after the last boat left, the mountain erupted.

Within seconds, magma started to dribble over the sides of the mountain and with many of the boats gone, it looked hopeless. Luckily Shiya saw the smoke and without hesitation jumped into the water. Using her bending, she got to the island quickly, but it was too late. There was already enough lava pouring down the sides to kill everyone still there in a matter minutes, but this did not stop her.

Jumping in front of the lava, Shiya tried bending the nearby water to slow down the lava, but to her amazement, she bent the lava instead. Realizing she could bend lava like an earthbender, she kept the magma at bay long enough for everyone escape, but not enough to save the prevent the lava from engulfing the entire island, just as she had seen in her vision.

Together the two sides traveled to north pole, but those who did not believe in Shiya, found themselves unable to cope with the shame of their decision and decided to move to the South Pole, while those who had believed in her decided to stay. (Some decide to go to the Earth Kingdom instead, but get lost on the way, settling in the swamps instead due to the large amounts of water)

News of the Avatar’s reincarnation spread quickly and in no time, the North Pole was flooded with travelers, anxious to know why someone else could bend all elements and how.

Confused by the return of the Avatar, Shiya spoke for the Tui and La and explained the purpose of the Avatar and why she was born the new one. She explained how the Great Spirit was delighted in the peace the original Avatar brought, but saddened in the state he left the world. Thus, the Great Spirit decided to forever reincarnate Avatar, so that they he or she may bring balance to world, while acting as bridge between the spiritual world and the physical world. In order to do so, the Avatar would be given the ability once again to use all four bending disciplines. However, to prevent one nation from becoming the dominate nation, the Avatar would be reborn in cycle amongst the nations. The order would be Water Tribe, Earth Kingdom, Fire Nation, and finally Air Nomads, then the cycle would repeat.

For 60 years, Shiya accomplished many goals as the Avatar, especially as a master healer. However, like Nubia, her time in the world eventually came to an end and she passed away peacefully.

The world searched high and low for the new Avatar, now knowing he would born into the Earth Kingdom, but could never have guessed that he be born in the middle of the Si Wong Desert.

Fire... Air... Water... Earth.Long ago, avatar Del lived a life peace and tranquility.Then everything changed when the woman he loved was taken.A being of unstoppable power, Avatar Del became the first to unleash the Avatar State.But when he regained consciousness, his wife and everything he loved was gone.Luckily, the spirit of knowledge, Wan Shi Tong, whom had been with him entire life, saved his home from the destruction.In response, Del founded the OWL, or the Order of the White Lotus to help the Avatar and further prevent the use of the Avatar State.But while many thought the nobody would challenge the Avatar again, they were unfortunately wrong.

This is the tale of the third Avatar, Del, and like Aang, what he did, change the world forever.

The world searched high and low for the new Avatar, but could not have guessed that he would born in the merchant city of Koh, located in the middle of the Si Wong Desert. Born to a wealthy merchant family, Del’s father had made lots of money as the sole owner of large trading business before settling nearby a large oasis. Building the original settlement from scratch, what once was a simple village, grew into a large city named Koh. As the founder, Del’s father became a highly influential leader, gifted with servants and a large glowing palace. To say Del was born with a silver spoon in his mouth was an understatement.

Unlike Shiya, who discovered her abilities half way through life, Del was born knowing he had the ability to bend all the elements. Almost immediately, Del was swarmed with shamans, travelers, and representatives from all the nations.

Disliking the overwhelming attention, Del found solace in books. Constantly reading, Del mastered all the elements with ease at the age of 6.

One day, while Del was reading about Go in his father’s palace, a strange owl flew in through the window and landed on his head. Fearful of the strange creature, Del try to shew the owl away, but no matter how hard he would try, the owl would follow him. Eventually he gave up and embraced the owl as his personal pet, giving him the name Tzang.

Following his love for knowledge, Del decided to create a massive building from which he store his massive collection of books, scrolls and other trinkets. Calling the place a library, he place within it thousands of the collected works he had found in his travels. But books weren’t the only thing he found he loved. On his travels, Del found a beautiful girl named Sailu (which means white lotus) who had the same love of knowledge as he did. Deeply in love, the two married and lived happily in the library.

For ten years Del lived with his wife in peace, until one night when Del awoke to a scream. Standing in front of his bed was a dark figure, holding his wife hostage with a knife to her throat. Angry, Del demanded what the meaning of this was. The stranger told Del that he was hired to kidnap his wife and unless he followed his master’s orders to the word, he would kill her. All Del had to do to in order free his wife, was kill the Head Monk of the Air Nomads. Once complete, they would meet him on the northern outskirts of town, alone. Only with proof with of Head Monk’s death, would they let her go.

Confused by this, Del asked why, but the stranger was gone, along with his wife. Unsure about whether or not to carry out the stranger’s orders, Del sat in his library for a long time, stroking Tzang while thinking of a plan. Stumped, Del decided to carry the strangers orders, that is, until Tzang dropped a book onto his lap. Containing within it was a recipe for a potion which would allow a person to fake their death. It would keep their heart, breath, and soul in a suspended state for 3 sun rises.

Del was overjoyed and he immediately set out for the Southern Air Temple, with the potion in his possession. Understanding the situation, the Head Monk took the potion and allowed Del to take his hand. Thankful for the Head Monk’s sacrifice, Del traveled back to Koh as fast as possible, anxious to get his wife back.

Just as the stranger had said, Del found a camp site on the outskirts of town. Calmly with the monk’s hand in his bag and Tzang on his shoulder, he walked into the camp site. Surrounded almost immediately by strangers in Air Nomad clothing, Del stood motionless as he surveyed the camp. Forced to walk towards the middle of the site, Del found himself in front of a large Go board, all set up and ready to go.

Forced to sit down, Del was greeted by a strange monk with no eyebrows on the opposite end of the board. Demanding his wife back, the monk assured him he would explain everything, but only if he won two games of Go out of three against him, to prove he was the Avatar, since Del had become infamous for his unique Go strategies.

Del agreed and to his surprise found himself easily beaten on the first game. Praying for guidance, Del suddenly heard a voice in his head. The voice told him not to be alarmed as he would help him beat the no eye-brow monk. Sick of questions without answers, Del demanded who the voice was. To his surprise, the voice admitted to be the owl on his shoulder, a spirit named Wan Shi Tong. Interested in his love for knowledge, Wan Shi Tong wanted to help satisfy Del’s thirst for knowledge. With his help, Del could easily beat these rogue monks, get his wife back, and continue his journey. Amazed by this, Del agreed to accept Wan Shi Tong’s help and together easily defeated the no eye-brow monk.

Demanding an explanation, the monk explained to Del how they felt the Avatar’s power was being wasted on peaceful endeavors. With his power, they could easily shape the world in their image. However, they could never control him without some of kind of leverage. Patiently they waited, until they found someone worth blackmailing him with… his wife.

The monk then asked for proof and without hesitation, Del showed the monk the head monk’s hand. Satisfied, the monk told Del that they would keep his wife, until he completed all of their tasks. Angry, Del demanded they release his wife and airbended the tents into the air.

To his horror, Del revealed his wife… dead… on top of the tents blankets.

Devoured with rage, Del’s eyes and body started to glow as he steadily rose into the air. Fearful for their lives, the monks ran in all different directions. Feeling no mercy, Del transformed the once calm desert into a huge ocean of land, with enormous sand twisters and waves of the sand the size of 50 foot tidal waves. The monks could only watch in horror as they quickly drowned in the sand hurricane.

Fearing what Del would do to him, Wan Shi Tong transformed into his spiritual form and tried all he could to stop Del. With one mighty dive, Wan Shi Tong knocked Del out of the air and with quick peck, knocked him unconscious.

The next day, Del was astounded to find his once small owl, now almost as large as an elephant shark he had once seen. Looking around, Del found his library and father’s city submerged in sand. Fearing for the worst, Del ran to the submerged city cursing what he had done. Crying while pounding on the sand, Wan Shi Tong told Del that his city was safe, as they had all hidden in the library, which Wan Shi Tong had protected with his own spiritual powers.

Using his bending, along with the help of Wan Shi Tong, Del bended the sand away from the city and found everyone safe, just as Wan Shi Tong had said.

Wan Shi Tong explained to Del that the state he entered was a defense mechanism, which allows the Avatar to channel immense cosmic energies of the Great Spirit and all of the previous avatars. Awakened through danger and great emotional turmoil, the state has both its advantages and disadvantages.

After the incident, Del continued the rest of his life as avatar, but made a promise to the world that he would make amends for the atrocity he committed. To ensure the world’s safety, along with the Avatar’s safety, Del secretly founded OWL, or The Order of the White Lotus in honor of his wife and Wan Shi Tong's assistance. Made of the world’s most powerful and wise individuals, the order would ensure the worlds safety if ever the Avatar could not.

Along with the assistance of Wan Shi Tong, Del lived most of his life in his library, eventually transferring ownership of it to the spirit as thanks for saving his life.

Old and fragile, Del passed on and the Avatar was reincarnated into the next nation of the cycle... the Fire Nation.

Thus, Yuriko became the fourth Avatar and the first Avatar belonging to the Fire Nation.

The Fourth Avatar: Yuriko

Air... Water... Earth... Fire.Long ago, the Fire Nation was ruled by the Sun Emperor.Then, everything changed when a slave claimed to have his child.Abandoned to die, Yuriko was soon recovered and then raised by dragons, but when she got old enough, they left her.A fully realized Avatar, but abandoned by everyone, Yuriko became a hermit. And although she wished to be alone, misfortune and fate would not leave her be, as a terrifying plaque began to engulf the world.But as history has shown us, even the tiniest spark, can become a roaring flame.

This is the tale of the fourth Avatar, Yuriko, and like Korra, what she did, change the world forever.

Before the death of Del, the Fire Nation was a peaceful, but stubborn nation. Ruled by the Sun Emperor, the Fire Nation chose to isolate itself from the rest of the world, unless absolutely necessary. Guarding the Eternal Flame, every Fire Nation citizen was bound by a universal code of honor and taught to be warriors before anything else.

The Sun Emperor was notorious for his cheating, but to challenge the Sun Emperor was suicide. A powerful warrior, the Sun Emperor did what he wanted, whenever he wanted.

One day, a slave approached the Sun Emperor in secrecy, carrying with her a weak child. Claiming the child to be his, the Emperor was disgusted at the very idea of having a low born weakling ascend the throne. He ordered to the slave to secretly dispose of the child and the slave reluctantly agreed.

Fearing the worst for her child, but also fearful of her own life, the slave put her child on a well-known trail, hoping the child would be picked up and raised. To ensure the child would eventually learn of her heritage the slave branded the child’s back with her family’s symbol.

For two full days, nobody came across the child on the trail and the future looked grim for the young avatar.

Luckily, fate was on the child’s side and she was discovered by a large blue female dragon. Sensing a great spiritual power within the child, the dragon took the child and decided to raise her as if she was her own offspring. Amazed by the human child’s ability to breathe fire, the rest of the dragon’s horde accepted the child and took care of her. They taught her to how to defend herself, how to cook, how to communicate, and how live off the land.

This continued for 10 years, until one day, while the child and the blue dragon were the bathing, she bent the water to splash the dragon. Surprised by this, the blue dragon decided to take the child to the matriarch, to decide her fate. A wise dragon, the matriarch decided that the human child must leave the horde and be with her kind. Personally teaching the child the human’s language, the dragons flew her to the edge of fire nation village and left her.

Walking into the village, she was greeted with kindness and acceptance by the villagers, but when asked her name, she was silent. She had never needed names and as a child, never had one. She was simply known by the dragons as the one who could move the water, earth, and air. Afraid of what might happen to her, the child bended all four elements in front of the villagers like she had done in front of the matriarch dragon. Amazed that the avatar was standing before them, the village reported to the Sun Emperor that they had the fire nation avatar.

Immediately the Sun Emperor set out for the small village, but when he arrived, he was appalled. How could such a disgusting and poorly educated child be the avatar? Demanding an explanation, the village said that she appeared out of nowhere and had showed them her power when asked for her name. Fearful of what the world would think, The Sun Emperor took it upon himself to raise the child to be proper, but this was short lived as he soon found the mark of the slave upon her back. The Sun Emeperor quickly burned the marked off, but soon found himself unable to raise the dangerously wild child. Naming her after his great grandmother, Yuriko, the Sun Emperor consulted his brother about what to do with the child who could be his successor.

Yuriko’s uncle told the Sun Emperor that she would bring nothing but to disgrace to the kingdom as both the successor to the fire nation crown and the avatar. He could easily keep the emergence of the avatar secret from the world and simply claim that she died of a mysterious illness.

Luckily for Yuriko, a White Lotus agent heard of this plan and grabbed Yuriko before the plan could be executed. Raising her in secret, the Order of the White Lotus taught her until she turned 22. Now, fully capable of supporting herself and fluent in the common language, Yuriko decided to become a hermit, as the world didn’t really need the avatar.

As a hermit, Yuriko reflected her life while living a life of tranquility and peace, until she discovered two abandoned twins in the same basket. Young boys, the two had been abandoned by their parents for some unknown reason. Feeling the need to do what the dragons had done for her, Yuriko decided to raise the twins as her own, teaching them what the dragons and the Order of the White Lotus had taught her.

Naming them Jeong and Tsuo, the two became master fire benders and were practically inseparable. Invited to become members of the Order of The White Lotus, Yuriko was proud of her sons and planned to remain a hermit until death, but fate was not done with Yuriko.

Emerging from an unknown earth kingdom village, the world faced the worst tragedy it would ever see. Infecting people by the thousands, a plague engulfed the planet, transforming whole villages into ghost towns. The whole world panicked as it even claimed the life of the invincible Sun Emperor. Informed by the order of what was happening, Yuriko ended her hermitage and sought out Wan Shi Tong for a cure.

Completely ignoring her pleas for help, Wan Shi Tong told her that the plague would eventually end, but Yuriko didn't give up. Demanding a cure, Wan Shi Tong warned her of the consequences of such knowledge, but she didn’t care.

Bluntly, Wan Shi Tong told her that the cure was dragons blood.

Unable to hunt the dragons, which had taught the world fire bending and saved her as a child, Yuriko was conflicted about what to do. Sitting next to the Eternal Flame, Yuriko mediated on this predicament. Unable to come to a decision, Yuriko decided to ask the one person who might have an answer . . . the spirit of the sun.

Known from the other spirits as a being of great temper and pride, Yuriko told the Sun Spirit of her frustrating dilemma. Amused by her passion and will, the Sun Spirit gave Yuriko two options.

The first option was be to transform her uncle into a dragon and sacrifice him. She would save the world, but only one-sixteenth of humanity would survive.

The second option was be to transform one of her “adopted” sons into a dragon and sacrifice him. She would save the world and be rid of the worst Sun Emperors the world would ever see.

Unable to accept these options and consumed with anger at herself, Yuriko attacked the Sun Spirit using all her power. Surprised by her ability to actually harm him, the Sun Spirit decided to give her a third option. Using his powers he could transform Yuriko into a dragon and allow her to sacrifice herself. She would be able save the world, but as a result, would plunge it further into darkness.

Knowing full well of the consequences, Yuriko agreed to this and awoke in the physical world. Doing exactly what the Sun Spirit told her, Yuriko walked into the Eternal Flame and emerged from it a huge yellow dragon, with scales like glittering gold and wings brighter than any flame.

Using her new body, Yuriko traveled to each body of water, depositing a little bit of her blood in the water. With immense will and drive, Yuriko cleansed the world of the disease, but died of blood loss and exhaustion.

Crowned the new Sun Emperor and made head of the Order of The White Lotus, Jeong and Tsuo allowed the dragons to cremate her body and buried her on her favorite field.

Rumor has it that the first fire lily grew from her grave and that the dragons spread the fire lily’s seeds across the world to remind the world of her sacrifice.

And there are even some depictions of various Avatars after that:

Famous Air Nomad Avatars (Tornar, Koz, Jian)

Avatar Tornar (left) – Explored and made a detailed map of the entire world, which every nation now uses

Mako stirs from sleep to a grey drizzle and brushes away the gravel pressed into his skin. The city is slowly rousing from a sluggish haze too, satomobiles sounding like rolling waves in the distance. The newspapers he’d laid down as bedding last night are soaked, but the headlines are still legible. A child was born two days ago, on Air Temple Island, the whole world hushed to see if the spirits have blessed her with the gift of wind. He puts the papers away and goes to wake Bolin. It looks like it will rain harder later.